Ear Piercing

Ear piercings are the perfect way to switch up your look and reawaken your rebellious streak without committing to ink. Before you (or your gutsy mate) step up to the needle, though, it’s good to find out what to expect.

What you can expect?

First things first, you’ll be asked to fill in a consent form and a quick questionnaire about your health. Once the paperwork is out of the way, your piercer will take you to the area where the metal magic happens before putting on some surgical gloves. After sizing up the target, they will prep the skin on your ear with an antibacterial cleanse, mark up the spot and remove the sterile, surgical steel needle from its packet. Once given the go-ahead, the gun or needle (depending on whether it’s the lobe or cartilage) will be pushed quickly and cleanly through the skin – don’t worry, it’s all over in the blink of an eye, and you’ll be blinged out with some starter jewellery. It all ends with your piercer handing you some homework on how to treat your ear piercing to save you any nasty infections. And that’s it – you’ve mastered the hole truth!

Even if you look after your piercing properly, you should bear in mind that a small number of people find that their piercings ‘grow out’ or move a tad.

Know before you go

If you’re not sure about getting an ear piercing, try buying magnetic or stick-on earrings to see what it might look like.

It’s important to find a piercing parlour that you feel comfortable with. Ask your piercer how long they’ve been in the game – the more experience they have, the more likely you’ll be made up with your new metal.

Even if you look after your piercing properly, you should bear in mind that a small number of people find that their piercings ‘grow out’ or move a tad.

The sciencey stuff

Ever wondered why some piercings suffer painful rejection? It’s all down to the body perceiving the jewelry as a foreign object and a possible threat to your health. This then spurs on the skin to kill the tissue on top of the piercing in the hopes of defeating this threat. Just when you thought piercings couldn’t be more badass...